Chapter 60: Back to School (3)
When Catherine entered the Great Hall the next morning, her mood hadn't improved significantly. She disregarded James' inquiring gaze and settled next to Mary MacDonald. The amiable Gryffindor, with brown, docile eyes, smiled cheerfully at her classmate.
"Good morning, Catherine! I'm so glad to see you! You were asleep when we came back from the feast last night, so we couldn't catch up. Did you leave earlier?"
"Morning. Yeah, I didn't feel quite well, so I skipped the last part of the feast." – explained the black-haired girl as she poured herself a glass of orange juice.
"She must have felt very sick to miss desserts." – chuckled Lily, who was busy perusing a magazine with Gwyneth Jones.
Catherine smiled at her friend, who went back to discussing some kind of evening gown with Gwyneth.
'She truly grew up during the summer.' – thought the young witch, admiring how pretty Lily had become in just a few short months.
The mail arrived amid a storm of feathers and shrikes as hundreds of owls flew into the Great Hall. Catherine didn't expect anything, so she didn't bother to look for Orion. Nevertheless, a big grey Town Owl landed in front of the third-year, carrying a package.
"Freyja! You should bring my mail straight to me!" – cried Lily, seizing the bird along with the package – "Thank God, my mom sent me my Intermediate Transfiguration. I would have been in so much trouble with McGonagall if I didn't have a textbook."
"You got an owl?" – asked Catherine, trying not to burst into laughter while watching how Freyja was just hanging in Lily's arms like a ragdoll.
"Yeah! I finally managed to persuade my parents I needed a reliable source of communication, but now I think I shouldn't have bought a discounted owl." – answered the red-headed witch with concern.
"I'm sure she's going to be just fine once you get acquainted to one another." – Catherine remarked mercifully, still fighting the urge to laugh.
"Oh, well, at least buying her with discount allowed me to save some money for our first visit to Hogsmeade!" – chirped Lily before returning to her seat.
"Planning a trip to the Honeydukes?" – teased Catherine.
"Yeah, for sure, but I also hoped I could have a look at this new boutique we were just reading about. It's called Charmé Chic, and it's going to offer a range of beautiful dresses, robes, shoes, accessories and so on!" – explained Lily enthusiastically, snatching the magazine from Gwyneth and holding it up for Catherine to see – "And look here! They will even sell items by Sorcerié! It's one of the most famous and expensive brands in the Wizarding World! It's like Channel or Dior, you know? I would really love to just see some of the gowns. Obviously, I can't afford them, but it's still nice to look at them!"
Catherine listened to Lily with a smile. She had no doubt her friend would look beautiful in a gown by Sorcerié.
"She's not really into dresses, Lily." – Gwyneth interrupted her fellow Gryffindor and reclaimed the magazine, which turned out to be Witch Weekly – "You're not offended, right, darling? I just meant you have more of a tomboy style, but it suits you!"
"Flame looks great in whatever she wears, and she doesn't need any famous brands to show off!" – Sirius suddenly interjected, appearing behind his classmates. His face was red, and for some reason, he looked extremely agitated.
Catherine noticed Gwyneth jumped a little, and suddenly, she smiled charmingly, playing with her locks that were much more prominent than usual, showing the effect of a Curling Spell.
"But, of course, she looks great! It's just a different style. A bit dishevelled, but I do admire your self-confidence, darling!"
'Interesting how you can pretend to compliment someone and offend them simultaneously.' – thought the other girl but she didn't have the chance to defend herself because Sirius erupted.
"What you call dishevelled, normal people call natural! Better that than looking like a clown at eight in the morning!"
Gwyneth rose her eyebrows, apparently not taking offence at the boy's comment on her makeup.
"To each their own! It's pointless to argue about nonsense. I can't imagine Catherine wearing Sorcerié any time soon."
"Me neither!' – agreed Catherine with a twinkle in her green eyes – ''Let's go, or we're going to be late for Charms!'
While walking towards the third floor with Sirius, who was still furious and hurling every mean thing he could think of at poor Gwyneth, the young witch pondered the complicated life of a teenager. Although she had much more significant problems to worry about than her appearance, it still stung a little to know how the other girls perceived her. If it were Slytherins, she wouldn't have cared, but Gwyneth was not really a bad person, just a tad shallow.
'Maybe I should really wear something by Sorcerié for the next occasion I need to dress up. Mom would be thrilled. It's her own brand after all!' – the girl thought with a smug smile.